


Message in a Bottle

by StargazingAtWords (TheLonelyJournalKeeper)



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Edolas, Gen, Lucy and Lisanna friendship, luli friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-23
Updated: 2015-02-25
Packaged: 2018-02-26 19:35:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 17,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2663828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheLonelyJournalKeeper/pseuds/StargazingAtWords
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lucy and Lisanna exchange messages, become friends, and tackle the Edolas arc. Rated T for Tragedy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue and Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> This was co-authored by a friend of mine and myself on Tumblr. It's primarily a friendship fic and mildly an au.

Prologue

Sitting on the edge of the canal that ran along the street in front of her apartment, Lucy Heartfilia swung her legs back and forth above the water and stared down at the silver key in her palm. “I guess it’s time to make a contract,” she muttered, running her thumb over it. She banged her heels back against the wall, turned her hand so that the key was grasped between thumb and forefinger, and stretched out her arm in front of her. “Open, gate of the Dolphin Messenger…Delphinus!” Her voice rang out loud and clear, echoing off the buildings on the opposite side of the canal, and in a flash of light a chattering, grinning dolphin materialized in the water before her. “Hello!” Lucy said, leaning forward. “Are you ready to make a contract?” The dolphin nodded its shiny-wet gray head at her and began chattering at her in a warm, bubbly tenor voice. “Sure! Boy, this’ll be fun I’m a messenger dolphin did you know that?” he did a flip in the water, the flat of his tail sending up a spray that half-drenched Lucy. She yelped. “I can get messages through to anyone anywhere anytime any reason—any fish?” Lucy blinked water out of her eyes and said, “Huh?” 

“I’ll be very useful to you.” Delphinus said, diving under water and circling back up. “I never ever at all fail at delivering.” 

“Well, that’s good.” Lucy said, struggling to keep up with his mile-a-minute stream of speech. “What days are you available?” They discussed the contract, Delphinus flipping over and over in the water as they talked and occasionally inserting random comments into the dialogue that Lucy couldn’t quite comprehend. Finally, when the details were settled, the dolphin disappeared in a last happy splash that rained down on Lucy. “Ahh!” She slipped the key onto the ring that held all her other keys and closed the pouch that contained them, standing up and making her way back to her apartment. She held her breath as she opened the door and stepped cautiously inside, expecting to find a boy with spiky pink hair passed out on her bed, a broody ice-wizard in her bathtub, a woman in armor rummaging through her papers, or a flying, talking cat searching her cupboards for fish. For once, however, she was alone. Lucy breathed a sigh of relief, then paused. “Wait…did Delphinus mention something about fish?” Fish made her think of Happy again, and suddenly she remembered the story of his birth. “And come to think of it, I never did find out where Mira’s little sister went…” She said aloud. “Hmm.” Lucy stood for a moment in thought, then shook her head and went to the bathtub to turn on the hot water.

* * *

 

 

Chapter One

Lisanna felt cold, salty, air. That doesn’t make sense, she thought. I’m in bed at home. Why does it feel like I’m at the beach? She ignored these thoughts and walked down a path of fine white sand. Water tickled her toes as waves came in. Suddenly, she stopped. In front of her on the path was an old green bottle with a cork in it. She knelt down beside it and pulled the cork out of the top. 

She flipped it upside down and a letter fell out into her lap. She unrolled it carefully. It read:

 

Dear Lisanna,

My name is Lucy. I just became a member of Fairy Tail this year, so we’ve never met, but I’ve heard lots of stories about you. Well, I’ve heard some stories from Mirajane. From what she’s told me, it sounds like you and Natsu were really close—he, Gray, Erza and I are a team, now, and Happy too, of course. I guess you must know all of them if you grew up in the guild. No one has really told me where you went, though. Which makes it weird for me to write to you, maybe. This guild is like a family, but everyone has their secrets—including me—and there’s probably a good reason that you’re not here anymore. I enjoy writing, though. In fact, I’ve been working on a novel. Everyone (Natsu and Gray and Erza and Happy) likes to tease me, but secretly I like to think that they’re curious about it. 

Oh, I’m a celestial spirit wizard, by the way. You’ve got takeover magic like Mirajane and Elfman, right? 

Well, I don’t really know how to finish this letter, so I’ll just say that wherever you are, I hope it’s as much fun as Fairy Tail!

Sincerely, 

Lucy Heartfilia

 

Thoughts churned in Lisanna’s brain and a similar glass bottle appeared in her hands. Inside was another letter. Lisanna corked it and tossed it out into the sea. She could have sworn she heard the chatter of a dolphin, before suddenly everything faded. 

Lisanna sat up, rubbing her eyes. “That was an odd dream.” Lisanna thought. It had been unusually vivid.

* * *

 

 

For a minute, Lucy thought she was drowning in her bathtub—but the water was much too cold, and too deep, for that matter. She reached for the surface and her fingers wrapped around something cold, smooth, and rounded. She clung to it and pulled herself towards air. When her head broke the water, she saw that she was floating in the middle of an ocean, a glassy-green bottle clutched in her right hand. “Oh, I’m dreaming.” She said. She had a sudden memory of composing a letter in another dream and sending it off in a bottle like this one. Peering at it closely, she saw that there was indeed a roll of paper inside—but when she opened it, still treading water, she saw that the letter wasn’t hers:

 

Dear Lucy,

You must be the Earthland version of the Lucy I’ve met! You sound quite different from her though. I suppose that’s to be expected everyone here is almost the opposite of what they’re like in Earthland. 

Oh! You don’t know what I’m talking about, do you? Let me explain. I’m in Edolas. It’s kind of like Earthland, but completely different too. It’s sort of hard to explain. I think you’d call it an alternate dimension. How I got there….well it’s a long story and I guess it doesn’t matter since I can’t get back. 

Mirajane told you about me, huh? I’m glad. That must mean it doesn’t hurt too much. How is she? And Elfman? And Natsu? Just, how’s the Guild? 

Yes, you could say Natsu and I were close. Those were the days. 

Oh! Sorry. getting off track. 

It’s good to hear that Natsu’s in a team. He’s always at his strongest when he’s got good friends by his side. I bet Erza must be really powerful by now and Natsu of course. Do he and Gray still fight? They don’t here. I’m not sure I’ll ever be used to that. Oh! And how’s Happy? Is Natsu letting him have enough fish? He can be so stingy sometimes! 

Ah well, I still miss him. 

Oh getting off track again. I’m sorry, Lucy. I have a tendency to ramble sometimes. 

You’re writing a novel? What’s it about? I like to read a good story or two. Ha, I can’t imagine this world’s Lucy writing a novel. Not that she’s unintelligent, I just don’t think that’s something she’d be interested in. 

Ooh! A celestial wizard! I don’t know much about them, but they sound cool. How many keys have you got? Yes, I use animal soul! Or…I used to. I forgot to mention, magic is different here. It’s a resource. No one is born with magic in them except the Exceeds.

Did you know that’s what Happy is? Or I would guess. He looks just like one though I have no idea how he ended up in the forest! 

I’m in Fairy Tail too. This world’s version, of course. It’s nice, but not the same. I do have some tales to tell though! Fairy Tail’s quite rowdy no matter the dimension. 

Best wishes,

Lisanna Strauss

 

Suddenly Lucy found her own desk floating in the ocean in front of her and a chair beneath her. She grabbed a pen and paper and scribbled a reply. Just as she was signing her name, she heard a distant voice call “Oi, Lucy!” and she woke with a jolt, banging her head against the top of the desk where she had apparently fallen asleep.

* * *

 


	2. Chapter Two

 

Chapter Two

This time Lisanna wasn’t walking along a beach. Instead, she was up to her knees wading in the surf. She spotted some debris resting on the sand, but instead of rocks, and shells and sea weed, it seemed to be made of corks, and sea glass and scraps of paper, like the remnants of shattered messages in bottles. As if on cue, another bottle floated her way corked and filled with another scroll. This time she eagerly opened the bottle and read the letter, wondering if it was indeed what she thought it was. It was. Lucy had replied. 

 

Dear Lisanna,

There’s another version of me?! Ahhh, as if Gemini wasn’t enough (Gemini are celestial spirits that transform themselves into look alikes). It gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “embarrassing myself”, huh? But the concept of Edolas is intriguing…I can’t imagine what the opposite of me would be like. Or Natsu and Gray not fighting, which I guess answers your question. 

Yes, I found some old pictures and Mirajane told me the story of you and Natsu and the dragon’s egg that turned out to be Happy. It didn’t seem painful for her. Wait a minute…are there versions of Mirajane and Elfman over there, too, then? And if you’re from Earthland, is there another Lisanna with you?

Everyone is good! It’s funny you say that, about Natsu being his strongest when he’s with his friends, because apparently we’re calling ourselves the strongest team. As for Happy, I think he just steals more fish when Natsu eats all the ones they catch. I had a goldfish for a while because I wanted to try a pet that wasn’t a celestial spirit, but Happy ate it. I’m still a little mad at him for that…did I mention that they all like to break into my apartment? Every time I come home hoping for peace and quiet Natsu or Gray or Erza is there—or sometimes all of them. That’s how they found out I was writing a novel. I love Fairy Tail, but sometimes I feel like no one has any concept of privacy. Anyways, my novel is about an invisible man…sort of. It needs lots of work. 

Animal soul sounds fun, but that’s odd about magic only being a resource (also, whether he’s an Exceed or not, Happy’s certainly not an ordinary cat) I guess you must still have wizards, though, if you’re in some version of Fairy Tail. Do they just use magic items, then? I suppose celestial magic is a little bit like that, but I still have to draw on magic power in myself. And I guess you know how rare celestial wizards are in Earthland nowadays. I have thirteen keys right now, nine of which are Zodiac keys. Do you remember Loke? If he was always so attractive but infuriating you probably do—but anyways, it turns out that he’s actually the celestial spirit Leo and was trapped in the human world for the past three years after his previous owner died. He was supposed to die, too, but the Celestial Spirit King made an exception and I have his key now.

I don’t mean to be nosy, but if you got through in the first place, why can’t you get back to Earthland? Is it a one-way trip? 

Sincerely,

Lucy Heartfilia

 

Lisanna closed her eyes, collecting her thoughts. When she opened them, she held in her hands another a piece of paper in her hands with a few words on it. With a start she realized it was her own handwriting. With a slight smile, she thought the rest of her letter and the words appeared on the paper. When she got to the end, the words flowed hard and fast onto the paper. She absently wiped a tear from her eye before rolling up the paper and slipping into back into the bottle. Lisanna corked it and tossed it gently into the water. 

The tide washed it away quickly and this time Lisanna was sure she heard the sound of a dolphin chattering, but before she knew it she was awake again with her thoughts racing. 

* * *

 

 

Lucy was dreaming about water again. She was on a raft, floating in a tropical ocean, drifting in lazy circles as the waves bobbed past in their hurry towards the shore. She lay on her back and trailed her feet in the water, letting the sun soak into every inch of skin that was exposed. Something bumped against her foot and she sat up to see what it was. Another corked bottle. Drawing it from the water, she popped the cork out and flattened the paper across her knees, bending close to read every word. 

 

Dear Lucy,

This world’s you isn’t so bad. She’s a strong fighter and sort of a natural leader. Not to say those talents couldn’t apply to you, but it sounds like you’re a bit more…subtle. Better with words for sure and I could be wrong but you seem more empathetic. Gemini? Ooh! That sounds fun. Think of the tricks you could play with duplicates! 

Oh here’s a good one. You know, Cana? The girl who’s always drinking, right? She’s quite lady-like over here. Always drinking tea. Let me tell you, that was a surprise! 

That was a great day! We had so much fun! I don’t think I’ll ever forget the day Happy was born. It’s one of my fondest memories. 

That’s good. It makes me glad to know that they’re doing well over in Earthland. It means a lot to me to know that the people I care about are happy. Yes, there are versions of my siblings here though they’re actually quite a bit different then my siblings. Well Elfman is pretty much the same a few differences of course, but nothing you’d notice unless you really knew him. But Mira is very sweet and kind, not that she wasn’t always but you’d be harder pressed to notice it. She was quite a rebel back at home. Wore a lot of black and always got into fights with Erza, but I guess you’d know about that if she told you the story of how Happy was born. 

No, there isn’t another Lisanna here. I’m not quite sure what happened to her. I think she’s dead. I suspect that’s why I got sent here, like an exchange. I wonder if she was very different than me. I don’t think she would’ve been seeing as they still don’t know that I’m not her. 

I’m very relieved to hear that things are well in Earthland. Things aren’t the best over here so I’d feared the same thing was happening there. 

The strongest team? You must be good. I wish I could be there to see it. Are any of you S class yet? Besides Erza, I mean. 

That’s Happy for you! Gosh, I miss him. There are a lot more flying cats over here, but as I may have mentioned they’re very high and mighty. They sort of rule this world in fact. Besides, none of them could replace Happy. None of these people could replace any of my old friends. Never mind. You don’t want to hear my complaining. Life isn’t so bad here. I’ve had a lot of fun. 

That’s funny actually. Natsu had a habit of breaking into my house, too. Well he did until Mira-nee and Elf-nii-chan found out! They gave him quite a pounding. He was alright, but I wish they’d laid off a bit, he wasn’t doing anything too annoying. It was nice to have the option of denying him entry, though.

Gray and Erza are new though! Except for that one time when Natsu dragged Gray over. They never did explain what they were up too. 

That sounds interesting. I imagine invisibility could come in quite handy though I suspect it would have its downside. 

Oh it is! I used to love using my magic. I’ve always had an affinity for animals. Shame it doesn’t work here. Yes, you’re quite right. It’s all magic items. They’re quite powerful, but I’ve never quite found one I’m completely comfortable with. I guess that’s because I’m not used to that sort of magic. Oh that reminds me! Natsu has a car here! He doesn’t have any motion sickness or anything! Weird, huh? I can just imagine Natsu’s reaction if he heard about that. He’d be so annoyed. 

Wow! Thirteen keys! That’s so impressive. No wonder you’re on the ‘strongest team.’ Makes sense, your counterpart is very strong here after all. 

Loke, huh? Yeah I remember him. I think he’d been around for about a year before I came here. A celestial spirit? I didn’t know that! That actually explain a lot, now that I think about it. Your description is quite accurate, though he’s not really my type. He always had all these girls surrounding him which was kind of annoying because they’d always start screaming once someone would start a fight. I guess Fairy Tail’s not for everyone, huh? The celestial spirit king! That certainly sounds like quite a tale! And you have his key? I bet that comes in handy. 

Oh um, that’s a long story, but I guess I can explain. I haven’t really had to explain it before. Everyone here thinks I’m their world’s Lisanna. See, about two years ago, give or take a few, Mira-nee was going on an S class mission and she brought Elf-nii-chan and me with her. Natsu could’ve come too, but Elfman said no. I often wonder what would’ve happened had he come too, but I don’t begrudge Elfman for his decision. He just wanted to prove he could take care of his family himself. Anyways, we were to face a ferocious beast and the battle wasn’t going so well so Elfman decided to try a full body takeover. I don’t know how much you know about takeover magic, but this is a highly advanced skill which involves as the name implies taking over the body of the subject. It’s sort of a battle of wills. But the Beast was too strong. Elf-nii-chan couldn’t control it. He was barely restraining the Beast from killing us. I tried to talk the Beast down. I can still hear Mira telling me not too, but I was so sure I could do it. I don’t quite remember what I said, but I do know that it didn’t work. This is where it gets fuzzy. I think he hit me. I remember a sensation of flight. A sort of soaring through the air and then pain, an impact. Mira was there. Everything felt so strange. Mira said something to me, and I called her name. Then sort of swooping sensation in my gut and the next thing I knew I was here. In Edolas. I was pretty badly injured but not enough that I couldn’t find my way to shelter which happened to be the Guild Hall, but it didn’t look like ours. The reaction everyone gave when I stumbled in the door was alarming. They all thought I was dead. I tried my best to fit in. I told them my memory was hazy, and I’ve managed to convince them I’m theirs. Elfman and Mira are happy. Life could be worse. But I don’t think I can get back. I wouldn’t have any idea how to even try and then my Edo-siblings would lose me. I don’t want to put them through that again. They already lost me before. 

OH! I rambled quite a bit, didn’t I? Sorry to be all depressing. It felt good to let it out though, you know what I mean? 

Best wishes,

Lisanna Strauss 

 

As she read the last word, Lucy’s eyes stung. She rubbed them furiously before snatching a pen out of thin air and composing a reply. Her pen moved lightly over the page at first, but as she came to the end she found herself pressing down harder and forming her sentences more slowly, hesitant about putting down the words that kept rushing to the front of her mind. “It’s just a dream.” She ignored the thoughts and shoved the paper back into the bottle, tossing it into the waves. Turning her head, she saw a shadowy shape flash beneath the raft. “Was that a dolphin?” Lucy lay on her stomach to get a closer look. Suddenly the whole raft pitched up and with a shriek she toppled face first into the water, waking with a gasp as she hit the surface to find actual water dripping from her eyelids. “Juvia?!”

* * *

 


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

This time there was no surprise. Lisanna knew what was going on as soon as she felt the cold water against her skin. It was a bit different this time from how it had been the other two times. She was in her mermaid takeover, aways out from the beach. She didn’t see the bottle at first, but that was okay because she enjoyed swimming and the water was a clear blue. Sometime later, (it was hard to tell in a dream) she spotted the bottle on the bottom of the ocean which she thought was strange as the last two times it was floating. Maybe it brought heavier news. 

As soon as she touched it she found herself back in human form reclining on the beach with the waves gently lapping at her feet. She quickly uncorked it and pulled the letter out. She unrolled it carefully and began reading. 

 

Dear Lisanna,

Well that’s good to hear! I’m not really very good in a fight myself—I leave that to my spirits, usually, if the need arises. 

I can’t imagine Cana being lady-like and drinking tea! And it must be kind of hard for you to get used to your siblings being different…although, the Edolas Mira sounds a lot like the Mira I know, actually…I guess she’s changed quite a bit since you left. 

As far as being the Strongest Team, sometimes I wonder if that’s Natsu and Gray’s egos getting the better of them more than actual fact, but we are pretty good, I think. Erza is still the only one of us who is S-class—I’m nowhere near that level—but we got in a lot of trouble a while ago because Natsu, Gray and I took on an S-class job anyway…and Gray nearly died. But we’re all alright now. 

Oh, Happy should never find out about that…he’d probably try to be high and mighty, too. He can be really mean to me, sometimes. 

I wish I had some family to give Natsu and the others a beating (I live by myself)…it makes me so mad to come home and find them dozing in my bed or sitting in my bathtub, and Gray’s always lounging around half-naked. 

That must be really frustrating not to be able to use your magic. I’d be really upset if I couldn’t use my keys anymore. But goodness, I wish Natsu could get over motion sickness! 

Yeah, Loke is an interesting story…when I first joined the guild he tried to flirt with me like he does with all the girls but as soon as he heard I was a Celestial Wizard he freaked out and ran off and then kept doing this weird back-and-forth between flirting with me and avoiding me, and then one day he broke up with all his girlfriends. Well, I figured out something must be going on so I had one of my spirits look into it and found out that he was a spirit just as he was about to run out of magic power…and he was ready to give up and die, but I tried to persuade him not to…and then, like I said, the Celestial Spirit King made an exception and let him back into the Celestial world. Honestly, he’s not really my type either, but ever since then he’s always trying to carry me off places and babbling on about “our love” whenever he shows up. He’s a really powerful spirit, though—the king of the Zodiac spirits, actually—and he’s really loyal to me, so that’s really nice. I love my spirits for that. I guess they’re kind of like my family, too…

That’s horrible, Lisanna…I’m so sorry. As I said, I haven’t even been here a year, but I don’t know if I could stand being separated from everyone. My father tried to have another guild kidnap me and take me home a while ago, and just the possibility of leaving Fairy Tail made me sick, so for you, who grew up here, and has family here…I wish there was a way I could help you get back. But then, like you said, that would be heartbreaking for the Edolas versions of your siblings and your guild…oh, that’s just awful. I know what you mean about letting it out, though, and I’m glad that you felt like you could tell me about it! Maybe some things heal faster if you talk about them and resolve them…and maybe I should take my own advice…but oh, never mind. Anyway, you said things are bad in Edolas? How so? There have been some pretty bad times here, lately, but we all keep pushing through, so far. And actually some good things came out of the bad! We got a new, much fancier guild hall after the guild called Phantom Lord destroyed the old one (I still feel guilty about that, it was partly because they were hired to kidnap me). The new guild hall is really nice. Natsu keeps complaining about it, though, just because it’s not what he’s used to, I guess. But I think he will get used to it eventually. 

Sincerely,

Lucy Heartfilia

 

This time there was a pen with the piece of paper. She still didn’t use her hands though. The pen hovered over the paper and wrote whatever she directed. Lisanna took great care with this letter. There were a lot of things she wanted to say. 

As soon as she was done, she signed it by hand and rolled it up before sliding it into the bottle. It corked itself and she tossed it out to sea gently. She heard a few snatches of rapid fire speech. 

“Gotta get-“ “Lucy” “Took her long enough” 

Something was sending her letter to Lucy! Lisanna splashed out into the waves but before she could reach the letter carrier (which she thought was a dolphin) she woke up. 

Lisanna sat up suddenly. She ran her fingers threw her hair wondering what was happening. 

“Get up, Lisanna!” She heard Mira call from the hall way outside her door. “We’ve got things to do today.”

“Coming, Mira!” Lisanna said, pushing her thoughts to the side of her mind. Surely this was just her imagination. She knew there must be an alternate version of Lucy and the green bottle was probably just from her favorite drink, Sierra Mist! She’d never seen the beach before, but her brain had probably just conjured that up too. 

“Just a dream.” She murmured as she got ready for the day. There couldn’t really be a way to contact the other world. 

* * *

 

Lucy was hoping to end up on the tropical paradise again, but instead she found herself on a rocky beach under a gray sky and surrounded by cold, briny air. She wrapped her arms around herself and shivered, automatically scanning the shoreline for a flash of green, but all she could see were various shades of gray rock and water. She was about to begin walking up the beach to see if it was farther along when she heard a loud clink. Looking down, she saw that the bottle had just washed up against the rocks. Still shivering (how could she be so cold in a dream?) she bent down and snatched it up quickly, scrambling over the smaller rocks and crouching behind a boulder that provided some shelter from the wind. She shook the letter out of the bottle and studied it.

 

Dear Lucy, 

I can imagine that type of summoning magic could have serious advantages and disadvantages. That’s very interesting. 

Yeah, it was quite a shock at first. But then again, so was everything about this world. Really? I guess if I had been the one to lose her I might have changed a lot as well. Gosh, I’ve never really thought about it in that way, but if it had been someone else who had been taken, I would have been heart-broken. The effect of losing even one member of Fairy Tail would be devastating. You know how close we all are. 

You tried to take on an S class mission? Oh Erza and the Master must not have been pleased! Did Erza come after you guys? What happened? Did you get in a lot of trouble? 

You make a good point. He does have a bit of an arrogant streak. I suspect that comes from all the time he spends with Natsu. It’s a good thing most of us find it rather endearing and are the-I just realized I was talking in the present tense. Guess I’m still not used being here. What I’m trying to say is that the members of Fairy Tail were always there to put him in his place when need be. That applies to both of them, I think. Happy doesn’t mean to be mean. It’s a combination of his age, and lack of social skills. He is only six, you know. I’m sure you can stand up to him though. 

Ha! That gives me a great image. Do you have any siblings, Lucy? I can’t imagine what life would’ve been like if I’d been an only child. 

That’s a very interesting story. I don’t know a lot about Celestial spirits. It’d be cool to meet some, some day, if I could. How does summoning spirits work, anyways? And where are they when you haven’t summoned them? 

You understand perfectly, Lucy. You’re very smart. I want to go back too, but then I’d have to leave my Edo-siblings, like you said, but I can’t anyways so I guess it doesn’t matter. I just have to carry on I guess! That’s something else Fairy Tail is good at. 

What is it, Lucy? I know I haven’t known you for very long, but I can tell you’re a good person, and I hope you know I’m always there to listen. 

We’re running out of magic. Like I said, it’s a finite resource and apparently we’re almost out of it. The King is putting all kinds of restrictions on it. Hardly anyone can use it, and worst of it there’s been talk of disbanding us guilds because we use so much magic! I can’t believe they’d really go through with such a plan. Guilds have always been a constant. If they do disband the guilds, I’m sure we’re still going to try to keep ours going, but if we do we’ll be labeled a Dark Guild! 

You said some bad things have been happening? Do tell. Is everything alright? 

A new guild hall? Oh I wish I could see that! Yeah, I guess Natsu wouldn’t like that. He’s always been resistant to change and there were a lot of memories in that Guild hall. I’m sure you have some too, but change can be a good thing and it’s going to happen no matter what we do so we just have to adapt and keep on moving. 

I’m sure it wasn’t your fault, Lucy. People do bad things sometimes and that’s no one’s fault but their own. Why would some people be hired to kidnap you? That must have been terrible, but I bet Fairy Tail stood with you. Like I said, we’re all a family in our guild. 

Best wishes, 

Lisanna 

 

Lucy took a deep breath and reached into the air for a pen, continuously rubbing tears from her eyes as she wrote. The crash of the waves sounded incredibly lonely, and the moist air was undeniably full of gloom. She paused for a second, feeling the urge to sob uncontrollably, but then she looked down at the page and her heart felt suddenly warm again. She wrote rapidly and signed with a flourish, and after placing the letter inside the bottle and corking it, ducked out from behind the boulder and flung it hard out into the water. Then she gasped. A dolphin leapt from the waves and—she could have sworn—caught the bottle in it’s mouth. It was gone before she could process what had happened, though, and in a sudden gust of wind and spray she found herself blinking at the sunlight that streamed through the window of her own apartment.

* * *

 


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

She was out in the water again, far from shore, but this time she was in human form, struggling to stay afloat. The water was choppy from the wind of an oncoming storm. The clouds were thick and gray and heavy above her, covering almost the whole sky. Lisanna took a deep breathe and remained calm. She twisted around looking for the bottle, hoping it was floating. She felt something thunk against the back of her head. It didn’t hurt, but it wasn’t gentle either. 

She turned around and snatched it up, her fingers closing around the now familiar glass. As soon as she did, the water calmed though the clouds still hung low and dark in the sky. Lisanna pulled the cork out with a quiet pop and stuck it in her mouth, her legs still pumping frantically to keep her afloat. 

She managed to get the letter out and unrolled it, holding it aloft. 

 

Dear Lisanna,

Yes, I think losing you was devastating to everyone—and now that I think about it, I guess they don’t know that you ended up in another world…I guess they probably think that you’re dead…Oh, wow, that’s horrible to think about, but it explains why they didn’t try to get to you, I guess. And why they never told me about it. Natsu never talks about you, but I think I understand why. There are times when he just gets a really sad look and stares off into space, and I always thought that was strange because it’s so unlike him, but now I’ve decided he must be thinking about you…I’m sorry, Lisanna, I’ve probably upset you.

Yes, Erza followed us, and she and the Master were both angry, but everything was alright in the end and we got the job done. 

No, I don’t have any siblings, I’m an only child…actually, the subject of family sort of relates to what I said about taking my own advice, as well as why Phantom Lord tried to kidnap me. I’m trying to take my own advice because I’m not always very good at talking about my own problems, but here it is. 

Like I said, I’m an only child, and I’m the daughter of Leyla and Jude Heartfilia. My father is the founder of one of the most wealthy and successful corporations in Fiore, so I grew up in a mansion…but my mother died when I was really young, and my father has been too busy with work to care much about me for almost as long as I can remember. Anyways, I was really lonely, and since my mother was a celestial wizard and I kind of inherited that talent and some of her keys, I ran away with the purpose of joining Fairy Tail—and luckily ran into Natsu who was looking for Igneel. He helped me out with some trouble I got into and then brought me back to the guild, and that’s how all of that started. 

But to get back on track—My father hired Phantom Lord to kidnap me and bring me back to him—and since their master had a grudge against our master, things got really ugly. You’re totally right, though—everyone in Fairy Tail stood by me and refused to let them take me away. I was totally overwhelmed by that—I’ve never had people care about me that much. 

After all of that happened, I went and visited my father and told him that…well, that I didn’t really want anything more to do with him. It sounds harsh, but as I said, he never spent much time caring about me, and I can’t stand the way that his actions hurt my friends and almost destroyed the new life I’m making with them. 

Even so…

More recently than that, though, there was a big battle involving a gigantic magic lacrima called the Tower of Heaven and a bunch of people from Erza’s past, and then we banded together with a bunch of other guilds to battle a group called the Oracion Seis. Goodness, now that I think about it, quite a lot has happened lately…

Oh, that sounds terrifying. I can’t imagine running out of magic…I hope you find some way of gathering more. 

Oh! I almost forgot, you asked about celestial spirits. Basically, once I have the key for a certain spirit, I make a contract with it that lays out what days I can call on it. Then, when I do want to call it, I take the key and use magic power to summon it from the spirit world, where they live when they haven’t been summoned. I don’t really know what they do there, though.

I’m sorry for such a mostly heavy letter, Lisanna, but as you said, sometimes it’s good to speak what you’re feeling. Thanks for listening.

Sincerely,

Lucy Heartfilia

 

Lisanna finished reading the letter. Her eyes stung from tears and salt water. She brushed them away with a watery smile. Lucy was a member of Fairy Tail alright. She’d been forged through trials and she’d come out stronger for it. 

Lisanna felt something else brush her. It was a box which contained a silver pen and a roll of paper. She pulled them out and found herself in a sea cave. It was dimly lit and moist but it was sheltered and dry enough for Lisanna to write out her reply. The words to this one didn’t come easy, but when she was finished they felt right. The letter rolled up automatically and slid into the bottle neatly, but now Lisanna couldn’t find the ocean. She spotted a pool a few feet away and waded into it. It got deeper and deeper which Lisanna took to be a good sign. 

The water was almost over her head, but Lisanna spotted an opening. She took a deep breathe, still clutching the bottle, and dived into it. She saw clouded sky above the water and she swam up. Her head burst through the surface of the water and she took a deep breathe before flinging the bottle out to sea. She clearly saw a dolphin pick up the bottle in its mouth before swimming a ways and vanishing. 

She saw a patch of land out of the corner of her eye and made to swim towards it but suddenly everything faded. 

Her eyes were closed and she was warm and at peace. She opened her eyes and saw that it was still dark out. About three in the morning if she had to guess. 

Lisanna got up and went to her window, staring out at the night sky. It seemed so ordinary, but to Lisanna it felt like everything was going to change. 

* * *

 

 

The whole world seemed to be swirling around her, and for a minute she couldn’t tell which way was up. Finally her shoulder slammed into something solid and she wrapped her arms around it, kicking her legs furiously until there was air on her face and in her lungs. Lucy was clinging to a piece of wood, in the middle of the ocean—and in the middle of a shipwreck. There was splintered wood all around her, and the bulk of the ship was just sinking under the water. Wind and waves still tossed and slapped at her and she clutched her piece of driftwood harder, burying her face in her arms. 

“I have to find the bottle” she murmured to herself. Somehow, this strange series of dreams and her communication with the imaginary Lisanna—it couldn’t be real—seemed vitally important. 

She raised her head and tried to catch a glimpse of the bottle through the salty water that kept dragging her hair into her eyes. Over there—she saw something green in a tangle of cloth—what must have previously been the sail, she guess. Lucy fought her way over to it through the stormy water, still clinging to the broken wood with one arm, and yanked it out of the sodden cloth. She popped out the cork and shook the paper into her hand, balancing her elbows on the piece of wood so she could read:

 

Dear Lucy,

Lucy!!! They’ve done it! They’ve disbanded the Guilds! We’re still gonna keep our Guild going, of course, but gosh we’re all so uptight. We’re a dark guild now. I can’t believe that. This..this is just so nerve-wracking. What’s the government gonna do when they find out? 

It’s okay, Lucy. Thanks for telling me. 

I can’t imagine not having any siblings! They’ve always been there for me. They raised me mostly on their own. My parents died when I was quite young. And of course, I had Fairy Tail. The home for kids without families. Strange how many of us found a family there when we didn’t have one. I guess you’d understand that. That must have been terrible, feeling alone is awful. I’m so glad you found Fairy Tail like the rest of us. You’re a true Fairy Tail wizard. 

What trouble is this? And you said, Natsu was looking for Igneel? How’s that going? Still no luck? You know, the first time Natsu and I met I offered to help him find Igneel. Then again we were looking for him when we ran into that forest Vulcan. That was exciting, but it was probably a good thing Gildarts showed up. Oh I miss Gildarts. Natsu, Happy and I had such fun with him and I haven’t met him here. 

Wow! That really does sound like a mess. I think I’ve heard about Phantom Lord. Their master’s one of the Ten Wizard Saints, right? They’re really tough. They have a group called the Element Four that are really strong and they have a Dragon Slayer! Blacksteel Gajeel, was it? Who defeated all of them? I bet Natsu got into a lot of those fights, and Erza and Gray. And didn’t they have a Jupiter canon? 

I wish I could have been there. That would’ve been a sight to see. Though this Fairy Tail does have its moments. 

That must have hurt you both a lot, but from what I’ve heard you made the right choice. Family is made of more than just blood. That’s how Fairy Tail works. But I don’t know if you shouldn’t ever see him again. There’s always a chance he could change. It’s up to you of course. If he doesn’t do anything but hurt you and those you care about you’re probably better off without him. 

The Tower of Heaven? Erza’s past? That sounds dramatic! Erza would never say much about her past and we all learned not to ask so I thought it might be something a bit sad. Is everyone alright? Oracion Seis? That’s a powerful dark guild, right? That’s so impressive that you all managed to defeat them. Who all helped you out? Yes, it does sound like quite a lot has been happening. 

Yes, it is quite terrifying, but it all still seems a bit unreal. It doesn’t seem possible to run out of magic, does it? I think the King is working on something from what I’ve heard, but I’m rather worried about how he’s planning on going about it. 

That sounds very cool. I wonder what it’s like in the spirit world. Has anyone ever been? Or would it not be safe for humans? 

It’s fine. I probably deserve it after some of those letter I sent you. I’m smiling by the way.

Best wishes, 

Lisanna Strauss

 

Swallowing hard, Lucy pluck her pen out of the air as usual, and used the rough, sodden piece of wood as a surface to write her reply. She felt a lump forming in her throat as she did so. Halfway through, she stopped. Something was nagging at the corner of her mind…something about celestial spirits and the ocean. She pushed the thoughts aside and finished the letter, replacing it in the bottle and tossing it out to sea as usual. She waited, expecting to wake up as usual, but she stayed in the cold, sloshing waves of the ocean storm, clinging to the piece of wood. Her heartbeat began to quicken. Suddenly the wind picked up again and a giant wave bore down on her. Lucy screamed, trying to hold onto the wood that was now her lifeline, but under the pressure of the wave and the pull of the sinking ship, she was dragged underwater. She awoke with a gasp, bolting upright, one hand over her still racing heart.

* * *

 

 


	5. Chapter Five

Chapter Five

The water was churning. The waves were high and the wind was fierce. Lisanna paddled frantically to keep afloat. The sky was so dark with thick, heavy clouds Lisanna didn’t know if it was day or night. Lisanna narrowly dodged a stray piece of drift wood. 

Then her legs gave out and she went down. Sinking, sinking, sinking. The water was so cold. Nothing like the temperate water from before. Her lungs burned. 

NO! She thought fiercely. She jerked and tried to swim back to the surface. It was right there! But she couldn’t quite reach it. Everything was a bit fuzzy. Oxygen. Oxygen. Oxygen. 

ANIMAL SOUL MERMAID! She thought desperately. Nothing happened. Of course not. She was in Edolas. She always would be. She could never get back. And even if she could, could she really leave her Edo-Siblings and the rest of her new guild behind? 

Then, as Lisanna began to sink back down, she saw something. A glint of green. A bottle. She reached out and grabbed it. It felt warm to her hand. 

Amazingly, the bottle began to float upward with such force that Lisanna was carried with it. 

Her head burst the surface. The rain pelted her face and the wind tugged at her hair, but she was alive and she could read the letter. 

 

Dear Lisanna,

Oh no! That’s awful. Fairy Tail forced to be a dark guild…in any world, that’s unbelievable. Not that the government of Fiore has ever really favored us anyways, but that’s so extreme…I’m scared for you. 

Yes, Fairy Tail really became the family that I always wanted. Even though I’ve never had brothers or sisters, the people here have become those to me. 

Oh, the story of Natsu and I meeting…it’s kind of embarrassing. There was a wizard who was basically conning people using a love charm and I stupidly fell under the spell like everyone else, but then Natsu burst into the crowd and for some reason it broke the spell…there was a lot of other stuff that happened, too, but meeting him and consequently joining Fairy Tail is the most important part. 

And he still hasn’t had any luck. That sounds like a fun story, though! I’d love to hear the whole thing sometime. 

Yes, the battle with Phantom Lord was intense. Erza took the blast from that canon—it was incredible. And Natsu battled with Gajeel. The funny thing is that Gajeel and one of the Element Four wizards, a water mage named Juvia, joined Fairy Tail afterwards, and they’ve been great to have. Actually, Juvia seems to have a crush on Gray, but I don’t think he realizes it at all. 

The whole Tower of Heaven incident was really hard on Erza, but I think it was very good for her too. I think it made her realize once and for all that she doesn’t always have to rely on her own strength—that she has the love of her friends supporting her. 

As far as the Oracion Seis, besides Fairy Tail, wizards from Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, and Cait Shelter came together. Actually, we got a new member after that one, too! A cute little girl named Wendy Marvell. She’s a Sky dragon slayer. And she has a cat like Happy (oh, I guess what you call an Exceed) named Carla. Carla’s really smart. 

Do you think that the King is going to do something bad in order to get more magic? Is he not a good king? That’s a difficult situation…magic power is important, but it wouldn’t be worth it if you thought people were going to get hurt in the process. 

I have never heard of a human entering the Celestial world, but I suppose it’s possible…I don’t know, maybe I’ll ask Crux one day. I’m not sure if he’d tell me, though. We’ll see. 

As for my father…I’m not sure what to do. If he really can change then I’d want to see him again, but it’s hard to see that happening when it’s been the same for my whole life. It’s kind of silly, though, that I can welcome people like Gajeel and Juvia who also hurt me and Fairy Tail so much, but that I can’t do that with my father, isn’t it? I don’t know…I think…I think that it’s not really that I don’t want to forgive him—I just don’t want to allow him to hurt me or my friends again. 

Thank you, Lisanna, for smiling. I’m trying to smile too. 

Sincerely,

Lucy Heartfilia

 

As soon as Lisanna finished reading it, the letter got blown away by the breeze. Usually Lisanna used the letter as reference and just sort of left it where she was sitting when she woke up, but this time it was completely out of her reach. To make matters worse, the same box as before smacked into her head quite painfully and the paper was damp. Lisanna wrote out the letter quickly, pressing the pen firmly to the paper. She rolled it up as soon as she was finished and just barely managed to put it into the bottle and stopper it before a huge wave wrenched the bottle from her hand. 

Lisanna saw a familiar outline of a dolphin. She hoped it was alright in this storm. 

She expected to be whisked away back to consciousness, but she continued to be battered by the storm for a few more harrowing minutes during which she nearly drowned twice before she was awake again. 

She curled up tighter under her blankets, trying to shake the cold of the sea from her skin. It was another hour before she was able to get back to sleep. 

* * *

 

 

Lucy was expecting another storm, and she got one, but at least she was perched on a rock this time and not in the water itself. Not that it eased her panic, much, as the rock was far out in the water, and there was no visible means of returning to shore—and no shore that she could see, for that matter. She knew it was only a dream, of course, but it felt like terror was swallowing her faster than the sea could. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, placing her curled hand over her heart and trying to find calm in her mind. “But I’m already in my mind.” She said aloud. Lucy felt tears run down her her cheeks, scrunched her face to try to make them stop, then opened her eyes and looked around for the bottle, desperate to think about anything else. A wave nearly smashed it against the rock but she caught it first and opened it with shaking hands.

 

Dear Lucy, 

Yes. Yes it is……

Oh, really? That’s cool. Random chance encounter. Seems like fate. You were destined to join Fairy Tail. Bunch of other stuff, huh? Hope no one got hurt. 

Which story? The one about the Vulcan or the one where I met him? 

Erza withstood a blast from the Jupiter cannon??? Wow! She really has gotten stronger. Not that she wasn't always strong, just that would be a challenge for anyone. And Natsu against Gajeel! That fight must’ve been incredible. Natsu was okay though, right? And they didn’t destroy anything too important? Oh yeah! Juvia is here too! That makes sense. She’s the one with a crush on Gray? It’s the other way around here. But I suppose that makes sense since he’s nothing like the Gray in Earthland. 

Hmm! That’s good to hear. Erza always was so strong and independent. Here though……she’s…well….I’ll tell you about that later. 

Cait Shelter? I haven’t heard of that one. The rest I know though. Wendy! She’s also here, but she’s been here since before I’ve been and she’s not a little girl. I think she might be older than I am. I don’t know. I’ve never asked her. A sky dragon slayer! That’s incredible! Explains her skill at wind magic though. She has an Exceed? And she’s a dragon slayer? Makes me wonder if that’s just a coincidence. Does Gajeel have one? Also, what did Happy think? He hasn’t met any other Exceeds before. 

The king. No, I wouldn’t say he’ s a good king. He doesn’t care enough about the people. He’s too arrogant and self-serving and greedy to deal with the magic crisis. It wouldn’t be out of character for him at all for him to hurt someone else to get what he wants. I suppose this is as good a time as any to tell you. As I mentioned, the guilds have been disbanded and because we’re still going the King has sent someone after us to try to well get rid of us. That person is this world’s version of Erza. She works for the King here. She’s evil. Some people have taken to calling her the Fairy Hunter. You’ve no idea how shocked I was to see her. 

Yes. I agree. Magic is wonderful, but it’s not worth people’s lives. 

Who’s Crux? A cross? Is he a celestial spirit then? What could a cross do? 

I think that makes sense really. He’s your father. You expect more of him. He’s supposed to be kind and loving, so when he isn’t it’s harder for you. But with Gajeel and Juvia, it was nothing personal. They didn’t know you. They were just doing what they were told. And then the Master let them into the Guild so clearly he thinks they can change, but with your father, you don’t really have a frame of reference. And he was quite determined to get you back, you specifically. I don’t know. That’s just what I was thinking. I’m not even sure it makes sense. 

Best wishes (I mean it),

Lisanna Strauss 

 

Lucy felt slightly calmer just from reading, but the contents of the letter were not encouraging. Taking hold of a pen to write her reply, she frowned in frustration. Why was her subconscious conjuring up such unsettling scenes and strange dark stories for her? The dreams had started out fun and intriguing and she had even felt as if (figment of her sleeping mind or not) Lisanna was a much needed friend. But she couldn’t understand why the strange dreams had continued for so long and were taking such a frigid turn. 

Whatever the reason, it didn’t seem like the dreams would go away. “And to be honest with myself, I’m too invested now to wish that.” she said to herself as she put her finished letter in the bottle and dropped it back into the ocean. Hugging her knees to her chest, she watched as a dolphin whisked out of nowhere, snatched the bottle in its jaws and disappeared again before she could exhale. Suddenly something snaked out of the water and had her by the ankle. With a scream she was yanked into the water and was nearly ten feet under within seconds. Lucy kicked and flailed but she couldn’t seem to move in any direction but down. It’s just a dream, she thought, but even so it felt like the pressure of a boulder sat on her head and shoulders and there was the sensation of being stabbed repeatedly in the chest. Just as she thought she was going to black out, she woke up. She sat up with a little shriek. She had fallen asleep with her head resting on one of the tables in the guild. Next to her, Natsu tilted his head and asked “What’s wrong?” She shuddered, rubbing her arms, and muttered “Nothing.”

* * *

 


	6. Chapter Six

Lisanna had hoped the storm had blown over. Sadly this wasn't the case. If anything the storm had gotten worse. As Lisanna looked around, she noticed she wasn’t in the same place as before. She was sitting on the deck of a half-submerged ship. It was littered with broken quills and scraps of paper. She wondered what it had been carrying. Then a wave crashed over her and she sputtered. 

The wave receded and she saw the green bottle. Of course, it was at the far end of the boat where she couldn’t reach it. She battled her way to the far end of the deck, the part that was mostly submerged in water. The wind and the rain was freezing cold and she shivered, but she finally managed to reach it and pull the letter out from the bottle. 

 

Dear Lisanna,

Yes, I think it probably was fate that I joined. But whatever the cause, and whatever the hardships that have happened and have yet to happen, I’m really, really glad to be a part of such an amazing guild. 

I would like to hear both of those stories, actually! It sounds like you two had lots of adventures when you were younger and I like thinking about what Natsu was like as a kid. It makes me smile. 

Yeah, everyone is getting stronger fast. I think the only thing that really got destroyed during that battle was the guild, but as I said, we rebuilt it, so every thing is okay. 

Oh my goodness, Juvia would probably die if she heard that. As I said, so far Gray’s really dense about the whole thing, though I’m not sure how—she makes it pretty obvious. 

That’s weird that Wendy is older. Is everyone else the same age as on Earthland, or are other people different ages as well? Gajeel doesn’t have an Exceed but I think he wants one—he seems to feel left out not having one. Oh, Happy was excited. He’s got a little crush on Carla, not surprisingly. She’s a bit snobbish toward him though—I’m not sure why. 

That all sounds awful and so dangerous…and I can’t believe Erza is evil! That would be difficult to handle, I imagine, because to you Erza’s only ever been a friend, and seeing her as an enemy would be shocking, but to everyone else there, she’s only ever been an enemy, I suppose. Was it hard to contain your surprise? 

Yes, Crux is a celestial spirit. He’s kind of like an old librarian or professor, I guess—he gathers information from the celestial spirit world and shares it with me if it will be helpful—and it really is, sometimes. That’s how I found out about Loke’s backstory and who his original owner was. He might tell me about whether it’s possible for humans to be in the spirit world and stuff like that. 

Thanks, Lisanna. That does make sense. It’s still hard to deal with…but I guess some things aren’t solved that easily. And maybe over time my relationship with him will be healed. 

Lisanna, I keep getting this sense of dread lately. Every time I go to sleep I have terrifying dreams and I can’t help but feel like there’s something shadowy following me. It just doesn’t feel right but I can’t figure out what it is. Have you felt that way? Well, I guess you must, with every thing that is going on there. I don’t know, maybe I’m going crazy. 

But anyways, I really like writing to you. It’s nice to have someone to talk to about all of this.

Sincerely,

Lucy Heartfilia

 

Lisanna took a deep breath, inhaling quite a lot of salt water. She’d almost lost the letter to the gale several times. But once she’d finished reading it had filled her with a deep sense of satisfaction and hope. 

The silver pen fell from the sky like a rain drop, but the piece of paper was no where to be found. 

Finally she found a roll of paper hiding in a have submerged barrel. It was soaking wet, but the pen still managed to write on it. 

She finished writing and signed her name with a firm gesture. As if on cue, the boat which until now Lisanna had taken to be fairly sturdy, gave a huge groan and a jerk. 

“Please let me wake up before it sinks!” Lisanna cried. No such luck, the boat gave a jarring crack as the hull split in two and sank to the bottom of the ocean pulling Lisanna down with it. She held her breath and tried to swim back to the surface, but something caught her leg. She reached down to brush it off to discover it was a hand. She screamed, expelling the remainder of her air. She thrashed and fought, but to no avail. Her lungs burned. Her head ached. Her hands and feet were so numb Lisanna wasn’t sure she could move them. 

Just when Lisanna thought she could hold out no longer she woke up. 

She sat up suddenly, placing her head in her hands and letting out a soft moan. What was causing all these nightmares? They’d started out so nice too. What was happening?

She’d never had dreams like these before. She rolled over and tried to get back to sleep, but when ever she closed her eyes all she saw was blue, cold water and a sunk ship. She could still feel the cold. And as soon as she was almost asleep the feeling of suffocation came back. She sat up and got out of bed, pacing the floor. 

What to do? What to do?

One thing was certain. Something big was going to happen. 

* * *

 

 

It had been nearly fifteen minutes since she’d arrived in Edolas, but Lucy’s head was still spinning. “It’s real.” She murmured aloud. “Edolas is a real place.” She had ended up on the outskirts of some strange city, and was sitting with her back against an old abandoned shed, trying to comprehend what all of it meant. For one thing, it had to mean that Lisanna was real—and their correspondence had not just been a series of strange dreams. They had actually communicated, though how, Lucy still couldn’t figure out. Second, it meant that everyone, the whole of Edolas and the members of the Earthland Fairy Tail, was in huge danger. 

The worst thing was, she had no idea what to do about it. She still had her magic, thanks to Mystogan, but she was totally alone, and didn’t know where to start. Lucy had no way of contacting her friends, and she didn’t know how she could possibly find the Edolas Fairy Tail, especially considering the fact that as they were a dark guild now, they were probably being extra careful about keeping their location secret. “Wait!” she said aloud, suddenly sitting up straighter. Maybe she could still communicate with Lisanna! If she could relax enough to doze off for a minute and get her a message, perhaps she could discover where the Edolas Fairy Tail was. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the wall. Lucy was afraid that she would be too on edge to sleep, but the trip to Edolas must have exhausted her, because she drifted off almost immediately and found her self on a wind-whipped beach. A storm was still raging over the ocean but she ignored it and pelted down towards the water’s edge, praying the green bottle arrive quickly. It was half buried in the sand, and she dug it up quickly, scanning the contents:

 

Dear Lucy,

Oh really? Okay then. Well there isn’t much to tell about the first one, but I still cherish the memory. I think Natsu had been in a fight or something, you know how he is, and afterwards he just went outside and sat in the rain. I went after him to see what was up. I vividly remember that I was carrying this red umbrella because it stood out against how grey it was out there at the time. So I introduced myself and he said something like, “Oh yeah, you’re Mira’s little sister. I’m Natsu.” And then we talked for a bit and we got to talking about dragons and I told him they sounded cool and that I’d help him find Igneel and he really cheered up after that. He got super excited. It was so sweet. 

The time with the vulcan is much more interesting. Actually we ran into the vulcan a couple of times, but this time is after Happy was born. It started when Natsu, Happy and I were fishing down by the river. That was such fun. I told Natsu about these big foot prints I saw in the forest and despite the fact that it was getting dark we set off to look at them. As it turns out, they were vulcan foot prints. So we started racing back and Natsu and Happy pulled in front of me. They were going too fast for me to keep up. That was when the vulcan whose foot prints we’d seen grabbed me. I was rather terrified and shouted for help. Natsu and Happy must’ve noticed that I wasn't following them because they turned around and saw me in the vulcan’s grasp. Natsu of course, shouted at it to let me go and threatened it and all that, but the forest vulcan said that it would only let me go if Natsu kneeled down and apologized. Natsu did so which I was grateful for but the vulcan didn't release me. Instead he attacked Natsu! Just then, Gildarts came along and broke apart the boulder the vulcan was using to attack Natsu with his magic. GIldarts quickly took care of the vulcan and we thanked him. We became good friends with Gildarts after that. I have several fond memories of days we'd spent with him. He and Natsu were especially close. 

That’s good to hear. It’s strange to think the Guild Hall looks different and that I might never see how it looks now. It’ll still be the old one in my memories. 

Hahaha that’s funny. The differences between the people here in Edolas and the people in Earthland will never cease to amaze me. 

I think everyone’s about the same age. That is strange that Wendy is older, but I guess if she’s young over in your world that’s just the difference like how everyone else is. 

Aww I wish I could see that. I wonder why she acts like that. 

Yeah it was. I sort of froze in shock, not really believing what I was seeing. Mira-nee had to drag me away. I think she put it down to fright though which is fair enough you know how strong Erza is. I certainly wouldn’t want to fight her! You’d have to be as reckless as Natsu for that!

Oh that’s really cool! Sounds super useful. Make sure and tell me what you find out! 

Yes, you know what they say. “Time heals all wounds.” And while I’m not sure that’s completely true, it can certainly help. 

You too? My dreams are terrifying. I realize I’ve never really asked how you receive and reply to the letters, but would I be right in thinking it’s kind of like how I do? It’s a beach. And sometimes it’s different and the last few times it’s been storming. It’s terrible. I’m freezing and wet. And once I wake up I can’t shake off the strange feelings the dreams give me. At first they were nice, but now…… So yes, I feel it too. I don’t think you’re going crazy. Maybe I’m the one who’s crazy. Sometimes I wonder if Edolas is just a vivid dream and maybe one day I’ll wake up, but I don’t think you can dream in a dream, can you? 

It is, Lucy. I couldn’t agree more. 

Best wishes,

Lisanna Strauss 

 

Lucy took a deep breath and sat down in the sand to write a hurried reply. Once she had finished, she shoved the note into the bottle, crumpling it partially as she did so, and flung it into the ocean with so much force that the momentum tossed her forward into a breaking wave. As the water hit her face her eyes snapped open and she gasped, digging her fingernails into the dirt. Now she would just have to wait a bit and hope Lisanna replied. 

* * *

 


	7. Chapter Seven

Lisanna felt shattered, numb. But really, she should have expected this. Something strange had been going on for a while now, but nothing could have prepared her for the sight of her Natsu and Happy standing in front of her. It couldn’t really be them, but in the host of unbelievable things that had happened of late, this one felt right. Like it was meant to happen. 

But that didn’t make it any easier for Lisanna to know what to do. They recognized her at once, of course they did. And the look on their faces was almost enough to make Lisanna collapse. But no, she couldn’t. She had to stay strong and think things through. 

As everyone realized something was up, as Natsu and Happy (and that little girl who called herself Wendy, was she the girl Lucy was talking about? She did look a lot like Edolas Wendy. And her Exceed, Carla.), Lisanna drew back, scared. What did this mean? Would she get to go home? Did she want to? She’d have to leave behind her Edolas siblings and all she’d known for two years. 

Suddenly, she thought of Lucy and the letters. If Natsu and Happy and Wendy were here, maybe she was too! She had trouble calming down, but she told Mira she wasn’t feeling well and went to get some sleep. 

As soon as she drifted off, the sand of the beach solidified beneath her. The storm still pounded on, but Lisanna was sheltered from it by a big, rock over-hang. She scanned the shore line, hoping there would be a bottle there. 

There was. She darted out towards it, fighting back against the strong winds. 

Back beneath the over-hang, Lisanna hurriedly pulled out the letter.

 

Lisanna, it’s true! Edolas isn’t a dream. I know, because I’m here! It wasn’t something either of us dreamed. Somehow, we’ve really been talking all this time, across two parallel universes! I’ve been receiving and replying to your letters the same way, and my dreams have been stormy lately, too, but now I think I know why! The king of Edolas is trying to turn the Earthland Fairy Tail into a giant Lacrima to use as magic power. I escaped by using one of my celestial spirits, and then Mystogan sent me through to Edolas, but I don’t know if anyone else did. Can you tell me how to get to your Fairy Tail, Lisanna? The king has to be stopped and I don’t know what I can do on my own. I still have my magic power because of something Mystogan gave me, but I’m worried I’ll get caught and there needs to be some sort of plan to save Fairy Tail and stop the king! Can you help me, Lisanna?

Lucy Heartfilia

 

Lisanna straightened. She took a deep breathe. Could she help Lucy? Lisanna didn’t know for sure, but she was sure as anything going to give it her best shot. 

She summoned the box with sheer willpower and dashed out a reply. 

After she was done, she took a moment to calm herself before a wave hit her and she was awake. 

Fairy Tail was in trouble, both of them and Lisanna was going to do what she could to help. 

* * *

 

 

Lucy had drifted off again, still leaning against the wall. When she found herself in the dream, the bottle was already in her hand. “Maybe it’s easier for the messages to get across now that we’re in the same universe.” She mused, pulling the note from the bottle. Her mind buzzed at this thought, and she wanted to stop and try to finally figure out how it was that these messages had been delivered all this time, but what was going on right now was more important. She unrolled the note and scanned it quickly. 

 

Lucy,

I just saw Natsu and Happy and Wendy and Carla. Their Earthland versions. So we really have been communicating, huh? That’s good to hear. It means we’ve got a chance. 

He’s turning everyone into magic! HOW DARE HE! Lucy, do whatever you have to do stop him. 

You won’t be alone. Natsu and Happy and Wendy and Carla are heading to a town called Louen before going to the Royal City of Edolas to try to save Fairy Tail. Edolas Lucy went with them. Fairy Tail’s base moves around to avoid being captured so I can’t tell you where it is, but if you find them you guys should stand a chance. I’ll try to do what I can around here though I can’t guarantee it’ll be much. No one seems very keen to help out our Fairy Tail. 

And about your magic power. That’s very interesting, but good. If you can get more of whatever that stuff was that’d be brilliant. As it is, Natsu and the others don’t have any magic. That’s why they’re going to Louen to get some off the black market. 

I wish you and everyone else the best of luck! 

Lisanna Strauss 

 

“Natsu’s here, oh good good good.” Lucy breathed, turning the paper over to write a reply. Natsu would be a tremendous help—she didn’t have anywhere near his strength. Not in battle, at least. Suddenly she grinned to herself. “Oh, wait, I’m the strongest now, aren’t I? No one else has any magic power.” Lucy giggled and finished writing her letter. She pulled back and tossed it towards the ocean. The bottle had barely left her hand when she snapped awake again. “Okay, no more time to hide. I’ve got to get to Louen.” But how was she supposed to find out where that was? She stood up and stretched out, peering round the corner of the shed. “I guess I should just try to mingle and see if someone can point the way…” cautiously she made her way back to the crowded area of the town she had found herself in when she arrived. When she spotted a harmless looking stranger, she tapped him on the shoulder and asked timidly “Excuse me, I’m lost…could you point me in the direction of Louen?” He gave her a suspicious look but pointed straight ahead and said “That’s the next town over.” 

“Oh, thank you!” She took off at a run before he could say anything else. “Well that’s lucky, I just hope I don’t miss Natsu and the others.” 

It took her more than an hour to get to Louen, however, and she had to slow to a walk after the first fifteen minutes. She was out of breath when she arrived, but afraid to rest for too long in case she should miss the others. “I’d better stop for a minute, though.” she murmured, closing her eyes and wiping sweat from her forehead. When Lucy opened her eyes again, she was surrounded by soldiers. “Um.” Lucy said. “Is there a…problem?” 

“We need you to come with us.” 

“But I didn’t do anything.” Just as one of the soldiers grabbed at her, she heard a familiar voice exclaim “Lucy!” relief flooded her whole body. Natsu. She hadn’t missed them. She dodged the soldiers grasp and reached for her celestial keys. 

* * *

 


	8. Chapter Eight

Lisanna didn’t know what to do. She still felt like the floor had been pulled out from under her, leaving her flailing. Lucy, Natsu and the others were all on their way to the Royal City to try to save Fairy Tail. All of her old friends. Lisanna’s heart skipped a beat. Her siblings! Were they in the lacrima too?

She was out of sorts all day, not that anyone noticed being engaged as they were talking about the alternate dimension that had been revealed to them and plans for surviving and of course arguing. Well that wasn’t quite true, Mirajane seemed to notice something was up, but she didn’t say anything. Sometimes, Lisanna would catch her looking at her with a strange, sad sort of look on her face, but Lisanna tried not to read too much into that. 

Lisanna felt useless! How could she help? Lucy and the others were risking their lives all on their own to save everyone! And she couldn’t do anything to help them! Surely, Mira and Elfman wouldn’t let her go after them? And would it be any good if she did?

 

All these thoughts whirled around in her brain until, dejectedly, Lisanna decided to head to bed. At least she could get an update on what Lucy was up too. 

She took some time to get to sleep as her mind was still full of thoughts, but eventually she drifted off. 

This time Lisanna was on a raft which was being buffeted around by the ever-present waves, but the bottle was already beside her. Lisanna guessed it wasn’t taking them so long to travel when she and Lucy were in the same universe. She pulled the letter out, brushed her hair away from her face and read it. 

Lisanna, 

Oh, I’m so glad to hear that. I wouldn’t have had a chance on my own. I’ll try to meet them in Louen so we can work together to save everyone. I’m really glad Happy and Carla are here, too, because maybe they can help with the Exceeds. Thank you so much, Lisanna. I know you’ll do the best you can where you are. And just telling me where they’re all going helps so much. We’re going to stop this for the sake of everyone in both Earthland and Edolas. I know we can if we’re all working together.

By the way…did Natsu see you? Does he know it’s really you and not an Edolas version of the person he knew? I guess you probably couldn’t tell him that. I don’t imagine there’s any way he’d agree to leave you behind if he knew that, but you said you don’t want to hurt your Edolas siblings…Oh, Lisanna…I hope we get a chance to talk when all of this is over. I want to solve this problem but I wish there was some way your problem could be solved, too. 

Good luck to you too,

Lucy

Reading the words gave Lisanna a sense of calm. If Lucy had written them it meant she was probably still okay. She pulled her silver pen out of thin air and began jotting down a reply on a piece of paper that had materialized against the surface of her raft. She stuffed it back into the bottle and before she could toss it out to sea a dolphin pulled up beside the raft. 

It said something to fast for Lisanna to hear, but Lisanna handed the letter to it and dove off. Too late, Lisanna wondered if she should’ve mentioned the dolphin she’d kept seeing. 

When Lisanna woke up, it was mid morning, and the Guild hall was already alive with chatter. She discovered that Lucy Ashley was back and she frowned and went to speak with her. 

* * *

At last, they were holed up safely in a hotel room, and could breathe easy for a while. Lucy sighed and crawled into the bed, pulling the blankets up over her head. Tomorrow they would find a way to stop Fairy Tail from disappearing forever, save Edolas from the tyrannical king, and hopefully figure out how to return to Earthland. That thought sent a stab through Lucy’s heart. As she drifted off, she wondered what would happen to Lisanna. 

The dream was still stormy, but once again she found the message in her hands almost instantly. It was shorter than any of the previous ones had been—but then, now wasn’t really the time for lengthy conversation.

Lucy,

That’s good to hear. You’re welcome, Lucy. We can do this! 

I-I don’t know. I’m not sure what he thinks. I didn’t tell him and no one else knows, but he thought I was at first. Then he realized that everyone was an alternate version of the people he knew so I guess he thinks I’m Edo-Lisanna. I just…I’m not sure what to do. I feel like the floor has been pulled out from under my feet, you know?

Ha, yeah. We’re gonna need to have a long chat once this is all over. I guess we’ll just have to see what will happen. 

Oh and Lucy, did my Earthland siblings get caught in the lacrima too?

Lisanna

Lucy felt the pain squeezing her heart again. She could tell that Lisanna wanted to see everyone again, wanted to tell Natsu and Happy that it was really her and her siblings that she was really alive—but it was such a difficult situation. As much as she may want to, Lucy knew that Lisanna wouldn’t have the heart to leave behind her Edolas siblings and the rest of the guild who thought that she belonged to them. 

Though Lucy Ashley was an entirely different person than her, she had the same fierce loyalty to her friends, and the rest of the Edolas Fairy Tail probably did, too. Lucy sat on the stormy beach for a long time, mulling it all over, before she finally wrote her reply. As soon as she tossed it into the ocean, she came awake slowly, her heart growing heavy as she remembered the challenges that this new day would bring.

* * *

 

 


	9. Chapter Nine

Lucy Ashley had informed her that they would not be helping Lucy and the others any more. Lisanna was rather outraged, but she tried to hide it. Knowing she stood no chance of convincing this Lucy, Lisanna sought out some of the other members of Fairy Tail and began talking them over to her side. 

By the end of the day, the Guild hall was buzzing with conversation, trying to decide whether the risk was worth it. 

Lisanna was fairly pleased and she retired to her room, hoping that Lucy, Natsu and all of Earthland Fairy Tail were still alright. 

Her feet found sand right away and the bottle was washed up on shore next to her. 

 

Lisanna,

Yes, Mirajane and Elfman are a part of the lacrima, too. So far, I don’t think anyone except the people we already know of made it out. We’re going to go find it tomorrow and see if there’s a way to revert the process. 

I understand…Oh, that must have been horrible, because I know he would have been so happy to see you, and you couldn’t even react. We have to find a way to fix everything somehow, Lisanna. I don’t know how and I don’t know if we’ll even get a chance to talk when this is over but I’m sure that somehow, everything is going to work out. We’re all a part of Fairy Tail, whether it’s the Earthland version or the Edolas version, and I believe that Fairy Tail wizards can accomplish anything if we believe in each other. So believe in us, Lisanna. Believe in me and Natsu and Wendy and Happy and Carla. Believe in your siblings and Gray and Erza and the Master—make sure you believe in both versions of everyone. And especially…believe in yourself. 

It’ll be okay, Lisanna.

Your friend,

Lucy

 

Lisanna smiled. She did believe. They were Fairy Tail. They would win. She scribbled back her reply, never minding the continuing storm. She stuffed it back into the bottle and threw it out to sea, waving at the dolphin as it picked it up. 

She woke up the next morning and set her mind to continuing her mission. 

* * *

 

 

Something wasn’t right. She shouldn’t have been asleep. They were supposed to be trying to save Fairy Tail, to stop the King of Edolas, to save the day…but Lucy couldn’t wake up, and for the first time in quite a while, she wasn’t dreaming of a beach. She was trapped in a cold, dark cave, and the damp air felt slimy on her skin. She uncurled herself from her crouch and stood, rubbing her arms. “Maybe the ocean is outside this cave.” Lucy murmured to herself. But something still felt wrong. Where was she, in reality, that she could be sleeping right now? She couldn’t remember. It seemed like she had already woken up that morning, like they had been on their way to help the rest of Fairy Tail…Oh. She had been captured. Hugging herself, she started to run, randomly choosing the direction and hoping it led out of the cave. She had to find the ocean. She had to get the bottle and tell Lisanna how horribly wrong it had gone, to see if Edolas Fairy Tail could help them. Lucy Ashley had said they wouldn’t, but maybe she could be convinced if she knew how great the danger was. 

Suddenly she caught sight of a faint glimmer of light up ahead. She ran faster until it grew into afternoon light at the entrance of the cave. When Lucy stepped outside, however, she saw that the light was eerie. She was on the beach again, and it looked almost calm, but she could tell it was simply the eye of a storm. Lucy ran through the wet sand until she was at the water’s edge and pulled the bottle from a bedraggled patch of kelp. 

 

Lucy,

Oh…. okay then. Good luck then! Only a day to wait. 

Yeah. It was…so strange, like a dream. I didn’t know what to do. 

Yeah! You’re right! We’re Fairy Tail! We can do this! We’re going to save our friends in the lacrima and save Earthland and find a solution to my problem! We’re going to do it all, Lucy.

So you know, how Edo-Lucy left and came back here? Well I’m trying to convince the Guild to come to you guys’ aid. I think I’ve convinced a few people. Point is, don’t count this Fairy Tail out yet, because we’re going to come help, if I have anything to say about it! 

But how’s progress going? Is everyone still okay? Are you in the Royal City yet? It’s driving me a little crazy not knowing what’s going on. 

Your friend,

Lisanna

 

Drawing in a breath, Lucy fell to her knees in the sand, found a pen also hiding amidst the kelp, and carefully wrote out her reply. She didn’t know what would happen when she woke up and she wasn’t sure when she’d get a moment to sleep and communicate with Lisanna again, so she wanted this letter to be thorough. When she was done at last and had placed it, neatly rolled, inside the bottle, she got to her feet and called out “HEY! TAKE THIS TO LISANNA, FAST!” before tossing it at the ocean. A dolphin leaped from the waves and caught it in it’s mouth before diving under again and disappearing into the choppy water. With a groan Lucy collapsed on the sand again and put her head in her hands. How was she ever going to get out of this? 


	10. Chapter Ten

The Guild was even rowdier than usual, arguing about what to do. About the future of Edolas, the future of Fairy Tail, and the future of Earthland Fairy Tail. 

I didn’t meant to stir up this much trouble, Lisanna thought as she dodged a flying drink. But at least this means they’re thinking about it. I know that Fairy Tail make the right decision in the end. 

Lisanna retreated to a seldom used storage room to collect her thoughts. Something was pecking at her from the back of her mind. 

Are Lucy and the others in trouble? She thought suddenly. She had an overwhelming sense of unease. That settled it.

Thinking she wouldn’t be missed for as long as it took to read and reply to a letter, she quickly settled down into sleep. 

To her surprise, the rain had stopped. The air was still cold and heavy and she could still see heavy blanks of cloud surrounding her, but for the moment it was calm. 

It almost worried her more than a storm would’ve. It was as if it was preparing to unleash an even worse storm. 

Lisanna cleared such thoughts from her mind. She had a task to do. She had to remain optimistic. 

Lisanna was floating on a raft in the middle of the ocean as she’d done a few times before. It was almost peaceful, but for the surrounding storm clouds and strong wind. That made it feel eerie. 

Startling her out of her reverie, a dolphin popped up beside her. 

“Lisanna Strauss?” It chirped rapidly. “Lis-Lis-Lisanna? Lucy has a message for you! Fast, she said. Get it to you fast!” 

Surprisingly underwhelmed, Lisanna accepted the bottle it offered her. 

“That explains that odd feeling.” Lisanna murmured, hurriedly unrolling the letter. 

 

Lisanna,

I don’t know if everyone is okay right now. It…it went wrong, somehow, and we were captured. I don’t know where Natsu and the others are—all I know is that we got separated, and I think I’m in a cell somewhere. I must have been knocked unconscious, because I don’t know how else I could be sleeping right now. But it’s alright. We’re still going to get out of this, and we’re going to save Fairy Tail and stop the king and fix your problem. 

I’m glad you’ve convinced more people…I guess it’s pretty obvious we need all the help we can get right now. 

Anyways—we’re in the Royal city. 

Lisanna, I think they’re planning to execute me…We’ll find a way out of this, I know, and it will all be okay, but I’m not sure if I’ll get another chance to talk to you. I think it’s going to be crazy from here on. So I just want to say thank you, for everything, and you should still believe that everything will work out, and I’ll see you on the other side of this. 

Your friend,

Lucy

 

Lisanna gasped. She felt a few tears spring to her eyes and she batted them away. It would be alright. It would be alright. She believed that everything would be alright. 

But the way she’d ended that letter….it sounded so final. 

“No!” She said aloud, pushing those thoughts aside. Believe. Believe. 

She quickly reread the ending of the letter. All hope was not lost. 

Lisanna scribbled out a heartfelt reply.

 

Lucy,

Oh! Oh my gosh! Stay safe! I-okay. That settles it. I’m bringing in the Edolas Fairy Tail. We’re coming to help you guys! I’m going to convince them if it’s the last thing I do! Fairy Tail is in turmoil right now arguing about what we should do, but if I can convince Lucy Ashley (All these names and dimensions are getting confusing!) then there’s a very good chance we’re all going to come. Just hang in there! All of you! Don’t you die before we can get there!

Right. Royal City. Right. We’ve got this. We can do this, Lucy. 

You’re going to be okay. We all are. We all are. 

You too Lucy. I’m so glad to have met you. I’ll see you once this is all over! I promise you that! I’ll see you and Natsu and Mira-nee and Elf-nii-chan and we’ll all talk this out! And we’ll save Edolas! We’re gonna do it! 

Your friend,

Lisanna 

 

Then she woke up before barging back into the Guild Hall more determined than ever to save her friends. 

She walked up to Lucy Ashley and looked her straight in the eye. She might be a lot different than Lucy Heartfilia, but they both understood the importance of protecting their guild. 

“Lucy,” She began. “We have to help them. Let me tell you why.” 

She poured it all out. She told her how she was from Earthland and most importantly about the letters. She told her all about what was happening to Lucy Heartfilia. She tried her hardest to explain why they needed to help them. How it was the right thing to do. How they needed help. How only Edolas Fairy Tail could give it. How no matter the dimension Fairy Tail always has to be there for their friends. 

Lucy Ashley’s gaze hardened and Lisanna feared she would say no or call her crazy. 

But as good as Lisanna was at reading people, she needed a bit more faith in her own ability because Lucy Ashley opened her mouth and said, “Okay.” 

“FAIRY TAIL!” Lucy Ashley yelled. “WE NEED TO HELP THEM! WE NEED TO SAVE OUR FAIRY TAIL! WE CAN’T LET FOREIGNERS SAVE OUR OWN WORLD! WE NEED TO FIGHT! LET’S GO!” 

* * *

 

The reverse anima had started. It was working. Fairy Tail was going home. At first, Lucy wanted to cheer and do flips as they were lifted off the ground and started floating upwards, but then she remembered something, and her heart almost stopped. She grabbed onto the nearest thing she could find—the door jamb of a nearby building. “Lisanna!” she said out loud. They hadn’t found a way to fix Lisanna’s problem. Granted, there hadn’t been much time to stop and think in the past day or so, and she was the only one that knew that the Lisanna here in Edolas was really Earthland’s Lisanna. And what could she possibly do now to help her friend? Lucy didn’t even know where Lisanna was, and she was pretty sure she couldn’t stop the effects of the reverse anima, take the time needed to find Lisanna and figure out what to do about the situation, and then somehow start the anima up again. Even so, Lucy gripped the door frame tighter, resisting the pull of the reverse anima. She felt like crying in frustration. She felt like a traitor—she’d promised Lisanna that they would find a way to fix everything, but she hadn’t done it. Taking one hand away from the doorframe, she rubbed her stinging eyes. “I still have to try.” She said fiercely. “I have to do something!” Her fingers slipped from the doorframe and suddenly she was floating upwards again. “Oh!” The rest of Fairy Tail was cheering and shouting and smiling. “Come on, Lucy! We’re going home!” Lucy took a deep breath and tried to smile, but her heart still felt heavy. If she couldn’t help people, what was the point? If she left someone behind, how could she claim to be a Fairy Tail wizard? She couldn’t tell the others, though—it would only hurt them. “I wonder if I’ll still be able to talk to Lisanna,” she murmured to herself. But she would be afraid. Although it wasn’t likely that Lisanna would blame her, Lucy couldn’t help blaming herself. 

But Edolas was disappearing below her now. She closed her eyes and floated up, up, up, like her body was caught on the top of a rising ocean wave.


	11. Chapter Eleven

Lisanna felt a tugging in her gut, pulling her into the air. She saw light all around her. What was happening? She whirled around. Everyone else from Earthland were being pulled into the air too! Natsu, Lucy, Gray, Erza! 

“No!” It was too soon! She hadn’t had time to say good bye. She hadn’t had time to talk. She couldn’t leave her Edolas siblings. She couldn’t leave them to go through the pain of losing her again. 

She turned towards her Edolas siblings. Mira reached out and took her hand. 

“We knew you weren’t ours for a while now.” She said softly. 

Lisanna gasped. She felt tears on her cheeks. 

“We were so glad to have had this time with you, but now you have to go. You’re a very sweet girl, just as sweet as our Lisanna and you can’t put your real siblings through any more pain. Return to them, Lisanna. And give them our best.” 

Lisanna reached out to hug Mira, and Elfman pulled Lisanna towards him into an embrace as well. 

Then they let her go. She let out a heartfelt sob. 

As her feet hit the ground of Earthland, she whispered. “Good bye.” 

But the story wasn’t over yet. 

Lisanna spent a good long while, just sitting there. Sobbing, thinking, and wondering. Then a black Exceed came along. Lisanna had never seen him before, but with a cry about something suspicious he tied her hands together with a long piece of rope. 

He bounded off in a seemingly random direction, but then Lisanna heard voices. Her heart beat still faster. 

Then the Exceed pulled her into a clearing. “Hey! What are you doing?” She exclaimed. Then she stumbled and hit the ground. “Ow!” She moaned. “That hurt!” 

Everything went silent for a moment. 

“But that looks just like-“

“It can’t be…” 

Lisanna looked up and her eyes widened in shock. Lucy, Natsu, Gray, Erza, a young blue-haired girl who Lisanna assumed was Wendy, and a tall black haired man all   stood there staring at her. There were also several Exceeds, Happy, a white cat who she figured was Carla, and the black one who had her tied up. 

Her eyes met Natsu’s. He was staring at her with a look of complete shock. Lisanna felt more tears gather in her eyes. 

“Natsu!” She cried, and emotion quite overpowering logic dove at him. 

“I thought I’d never see you again!” 

“Happy!” She exclaimed, hugging him as best she could with her bound hands. 

“I still recognize most of you, but you must the two new members of the guild.” Lisanna said. “The younger girl looks just like Wendy and the blonde has to be Lucy.” She smiled at Lucy and sent her a look that said they’d talk later. 

Lucy nodded in affirmation. 

“Do you mean to say..?”

“You’re our Lisanna?” 

“But you can’t be!” Erza cried. “Our Lisanna died years ago and there was no way she could have been resuscitated!” 

Lisanna shifted, looking sad. Now was the time to explain and it wasn’t something she was looking forward too, but having already explained it to Lucy meant that it came easier. 

“The truth is…” She began. The words began pouring out and by the time she was done she knew everything was going to be okay. Her friends were looking at her with understanding and joy. 

* * *

 

Lucy swung her legs through warm, calm water, staring past the flecks of sunlight reflecting off the surface of the waves and into the aquamarine depths. The raft rocked gently beneath her and she smiled to herself. It was the most beautiful ocean she’d ever seen. 

“Hey.” Lucy turned her head. A girl with short, silvery-white hair and celadon blue eyes was smiling at her. Lucy smiled back. “Hey! So I guess the storm’s over, huh?” 

“Yeah. And we did it all, just like you said.” 

“Mmm.” Lucy leaned over and scooped some water in her hand, letting it run through her fingers. “Hey, Lisanna. Did you ever figure out how we were communicating?” 

“Oh!” Lisanna said, lifting a finger. “I never got a chance to tell you before. I kept seeing a dolphin, and the last few times it actually took and brought the bottle. He talked, too.” 

Grinning, Lucy exclaimed “Aha! I thought so.” She leaned forward, palms pressing into the edge of the raft, and called out “Delphinus! I know it’s you! Come—” the ocean erupted in front of the raft and both girls fell back, gasping as water showered down on them. “Hello, Lucy-san!” a smiling gray dolphin chattered. “Do you need a message delivered? A swimming lesson? Some fish taken off your hands?” 

“That’s him!” Lisanna exclaimed. “You know him? Who is he?”

“A celestial spirit.” answered Lucy. “Delphinus, you were delivering messages between Lisanna and I in our dreams, weren’t you?” Delphinus bobbed in the water. 

“I told you I could deliver any message! Of course it was me. Who else could do that?” Lisanna tilted her head and frowned slightly. “But Lucy didn’t know I was in Edolas—she didn’t even know it existed—so she couldn’t have asked you to bring me a message.” 

“I didn’t,” Lucy insisted. Then she snapped her fingers. “Oh! Right after I made a contract with Delphinus, I was thinking about that story Mirajane told me about you…and then I fell asleep. I guess I dreamed a letter—and then you just delivered it of your own accord?” She glanced at Delphinus. He bobbed some more in affirmation. 

“But how did you get it to Edolas?” Lisanna asked, curiosity dancing in her eyes. “That really is impressive.” 

Delphinus seemed to grin even wider than his nature-made dolphin grin. “The celestial world isn’t attached to one universe or another.” He bubbled. “It exists between them.” 

“Mmm, that makes sense.” mused Lucy “I was able to summon my spirits while in Edolas. Why the dreams, though?” 

“The dream-world is closer to the spirit world. It was the easiest way! I did well, didn’t I? I’m pretty clever that way. That’s why I’m the Messenger Dolphin!” Both girls smiled at him. 

“Thanks, Delphinus.” Lisanna said. “I guess we didn’t even know we needed you, but we did.” 

“Yeah,” Lucy agreed “You’ve been really helpful.” 

Delphinus did a flip in the water, splashing them again. “Great! So glad I could help you. Well, I’m off to find fish now! Don’t forget to make use of my skills again, Lucy-san!” 

“I won’t!” she promised. They waved as he sped away in the shimmering water. Then they looked at each other and burst into laughter. Lucy laughed so hard; genuine, relieved, utterly happy laughter, that she rolled off the raft and into the water with a squeal. “Oh!” Lisanna gasped between giggles. “Here!” She extended a hand. Lucy, still laughing, grabbed it and pulled Lisanna into the water with her. “Oi!” Lisanna cried. Flattening out her hands, Lucy swept them forward, drenching the white-haired girl. Instantly Lisanna dived under the waves and transformed into her mermaid-soul, shooting to the surface again and using her tail to propel a huge splash towards the other girl. “Oh, that’s not fair!” Lucy pouted, but after she had finished spluttering and spitting out salt water, she laughed again and retaliated. The two girls played in the water, laughing all the while, until even through the dream they felt weary, and then climbed onto the raft to lay in the sun. Lucy said “Mira and Elfman are happy to have you back. Natsu, too…well, everyone that missed you…and so am I.” Lisanna gave her a sidelong look, smiling, then reached over and squeezed Lucy’s hand. “Me, too.” she said. They stared into the infinite blue dream-sky in silence.

* * *

 

The past few days had been one thing after another. She’d met up with her siblings and friends, one of the best moments of her life. She’d gone back to the guild hall and they’d partied all night. She’d been constantly adjusting to being back in Earthland and then just as she’d finally gotten to sleep she’d had that chat with Delphinus and Lucy. 

And now Lisanna was having just a minute to collect her thoughts. She smiled. It felt good to be back. She felt complete for the first time in two years. Everything about Earthland felt right. 

A thought occurred to her suddenly. She still hadn’t used her magic yet, not properly. She smiled again, an idea occurring to her. 

She returned to the Guild hall and walked over to Lucy who was chatting with Natsu and Gray. Or rather, she was watching Natsu and Gray fight a bit nervously. 

That was a sight she’d missed, if she was honest, simply because it was such a regular occurrence. 

All three froze briefly when they saw her. Lisanna guessed they were just as unused to her being back as she was. 

“Hi Natsu! Hi Gray! Hi Lucy!” 

Gray nodded casually to her. Natsu grinned, “Hey Lisanna!” Lucy smiled, “Hi! Did you want something?” 

Lisanna nodded, cheerfully. “Do you want to come on a mission with me Lucy? It’ll be my first since I got back and I thought it’d be a good idea to have some back-up.” 

Natsu look up from where he was continuing to pummel Gray. 

“Can I come?” 

The two laughed. “Sorry Natsu!” Lisanna said. “We can go on a mission later, but I was thinking more of a girl’s day out! I’ve already picked out a job that I know we’ll do well at.” 

Natsu looked between the two of them confusedly. “Do you two know each other?” 

The two friends just laughed harder. 

“Let’s just say, I met her in a dream.” Lucy grinned. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that's the end. :) It was super fun to write. Please leave feedback. I hope you enjoyed. Shout-out to Nojohi on Tumblr for co-authoring it with me.


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